Cats and Dogs the Remake
by Blable
Summary: After Kyrie leaves the World Destruction Committee to go with Naja, it is unclear what the half-beast's intentions are. Based on events in the manga Rated T just to be safe, may change later Pairing: NajaxKyrie A remake of the SoD story Cats and Dogs. I was given permission to resubmit this story by the original author of the story. There will be a few slight changes.
1. Chapter 1

**Remade Cats and Dogs Chapter 1 **

by ~TailWagNaja, Nov 15, 2011, 12:16:03 PM

Literature / Prose / Fiction / General Fiction / Introductions & Chapters

The small boat sped across the vast sandsea, its passengers going about their own business. One in particular, a teenage boy with dusty blond hair stood leaning against the rail gazing almost vacantly out at the starry sky. Only hours ago he had been a part of the World Destruction Committee. A small frown tugged the corners of his lips down; no, he couldn't really say that he was a part of that. He couldn't be a part of a group that would sacrifice innocent lives, human or farrel. Then there was the power that Morte said he had, the power to destroy the world. All of it was a lot to swallow, it would explain what happened in Barni Village. Just thinking about what happened was enough to make him sick, but that was just it…he couldn't remember anything. The last thing he wanted was to take away someone else's precious life. If this power was his, he should have some sort of control over it right?

"Terrorist…"

Kyrie jolted from his thoughts, or was it because of the rather negative title in which his captor; a half-farrel known as Naja, had taken to calling him. Actually, now that he recalled, he had been called that once before, but didn't make it hurt any less. Besides, he was just a nobody from some small village, now he would be known around the world as a menace to society…a terrorist.

"Hm?" he turned, gaze redirecting itself onto the silver haired male who now approached. It was difficult to tell what the other was thinking. Before, he had been so certain that Naja's intent was to kill him. Taupy had been clever enough to figure out the others true intent was nothing quite as drastic. Which only brought to light the question, what exactly did he want from him? Even when Naja paused and sighed, Kyrie quickly straightened up, had he done something wrong? Amusing? Unexpected?

"You're a curious case, "Naja then sated, "Taupy told me something rather interesting after out little…battle." While he couldn't really call their encounter much of a battle, he wasn't going to press the matter, "But first I have a question."

Blinking a few times, Kyrie brought his hand up so he could lightly scratch the side of his face, "Eh…o-okay, sure…what is it?" he couldn't help but feel he knew what the subject of the question was going to be, but what Kyrie wanted to know was what Taupy had told this man. Having lost consciousness after delivering at least a single blow to the other, it was safe to say that he had missed whatever it had been.

Studying the boy for half a moment before adjusting his glasses, "Do you regret agreeing to come with us?" Naja asked simply.

Perhaps his assumptions had been wrong, not expecting such a question, especially from a World Salvation Committee member; Kyrie could only give the other a wide eyed look of bewilderment. However, the look he was receiving told him that Naja was being quite serious and expected an answer. With this in mind, Kyrie turned back to gaze out at the sandsea, how could he put it? Resting his elbow on the edge of the boat and his chin in the palm of his hand, the boy sighed, "I agreed only because I knew I couldn't stay with them…the World Destruction Committee." A slightly more saddened frown formed on his face, he had liked Agan and Morte and all the others, but he couldn't view the world the same as they did. Just thinking about the last city, all of those lives lost, and for what?

"I suppose…the only reason I thought I was with them was because Morte and Taupy had saved me that one time. I thought I could pay them back, of course it wasn't until later that I realized her true intentions."

"Her?" Naja crossed his arms, "Ah, you mean Morte Asherah." He was starting to see Kyrie's part in all of this. There were still far too many unanswered questions, but the big picture was starting to take shape none the less.

"Oh, that's right," Kyrie straightened up again and turned towards the other, who in turn glanced up with a questioningly quirked eyebrow, "Since we're now sort of your prisoners, what exactly where you going to do with us?" the boy then asked, his mood had changed considerably as far as he could tell. The question; however, had only earned a wayward side glance and a sigh.

"I am presently obligated to bring you to the World Salvation Committee's headquarters where you will be confined." He then turned, allowing one arm to drop to his side as he placed his other hand on his hip, "After which, they will want to learn more about this power you have and what sort of plans the World Destruction Committee has." He then gave a rather dark smirk and chuckle, "Or…my superiors could have already decided that you're too dangerous to keep alive and have you executed."

Even in the poor lighting, when Naja looked over at Kyrie, he could see that the color in the boys face had drained considerably. "W-What!? Executed!" the blonde did not look well at all; it seemed that it was only now that he was starting to grasp the severity of his decision. Feeling that despite all of that, it wouldn't be nice to keep him feeling so riled, Naja held up both his hands in a shrug.

"You needn't worry though," the half-wolf replied, "I've been assigned your case so if anything where to happen, then I would be the one to carry it out." It was only after the words had left his lips that Naja realized how unreassuringly that sounded. His assumptions were correct when the look Kyrie wore didn't change. Frowning now, Naja rubbed the back of his head, while making the situation worse was not his intention and leaving it as such was not his plan either he knew that nothing he said in regards to the boys' fate was going to fix it.

After a moment of thought, he walked over and gave Kyrie a pat on the head, "You are not looking well, you best go below with the others and get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day."

Flinching slightly at the unexpected contact, Kyrie had snapped out of his nauseous and worrisome state to chuckle nervously, "Oh, um…yeah." He then took a step back, still feeling the subtle weight of the hand that was on his head seconds ago, giving a second nervous chuckle he bid the other goodnight before quickly making his way below deck.

The hand that had patted the boys head was still slightly raised a few moments after Kyrie had disappeared below deck; Naja just sighed and shook his head before placing said hand back on his hip. Taking his turn to gaze out at the vast sandsea and up at the clear night sky, the more he was around this Kyrie, the more difficult it became to understand him. There was no doubt in his mind that the boy had no fighting skills honed enough to be a major threat, much less have any reason to be violent. In fact, he was probably one of the least violent humans he had ever encountered….with a few exceptions but never the less. No, Kyrie was not the violent type but despite all of that, Naja himself had witnessed on two accounts where the boy clearly demonstrated a destructive power unlike anything he had ever seen.


	2. Chapter 2

**Remade Cats and Dogs Chapter 2 **

by ~TailWagNaja, Nov 15, 2011, 12:21:10 PM

Literature / Prose / Fiction / General Fiction / Introductions & Chapters

Early the next morning, Taupy had taken the morning look-out shift despite being considered one of the prisoners. He was still a farrel and as such had a few more freedoms than Kyrie, he would probably serve some time if things did not turn out in his favor. But no matter, the boy he was charged to protect was also up, he was fiddling around with a small grill like contraption in hopes of getting it started. He was hungry for one and wanted to cook something tasty, and two, setting aside the fact that he was a prisoner, he had willingly gone along with it and as such had no reason to try anything sneaky. Besides, he was not a sneaky person to being with…not really.

"Boy, did you sleep well last night, kuma?" the teddy bear looking farrel asked.

Kyrie glanced up from his task as if to think about the question, he just gave a pleasant smile before answering, "It was alright." This was more or less true, while he was not able to fall asleep for at least an hour after his talk with Naja, his slumber had been dotted with nightmares. His bluff did not seem to convince the bear, who had recalled talking with the boy about his nightmares. He did not want to press the matter at the moment, not only was it a touchy subject but he was also certain there were more pressing concerns on Kyrie's mind.

Rather than continue with that, Taupy folded his arms and gave a knowing smirk, "I overheard you talking with Naja, kuma. What was that about, Kuma?"

Faltering slightly, but quickly recovering, Kyrie glanced up, "heh, oh…you heard us huh?" this time the teen was a little sheepish, "Eh…well, he just wanted to know if I regretted doing this." Kyrie then sighed before jolting again as the minigrill started up, "Ah-ha!" he beamed rather triumphantly.

Taupy stared for a long while, he couldn't help but wonder the same thing. While he understood the boy's reasons, he also knew that there was a small part of him that did feel at least some regret. Whether it is for actually leaving or the reasons behind leaving. Sighing, Taupy just watched over the other as he took out some rations from a small storage compartment. Even now, in the midst of almost certain death, this boy still finds the time to cook everybody a nice breakfast.

An hour had passed before the smell of evenly cooked salted sandwhale wafted down into the lower cabin of the small vessel. The younger of the farrels, and Naja's attendant, was the first to wake. He met with the others and was surprised to find such a wonderful scent to be the creation of a human. Of course, he was still a little leery of Kyrie, but Naja had seemed content enough to trust them at least this much so he just gave the two a smile.

"That looks really good," he beamed, Kyrie just chuckled while making a plate, he then held the plate out for the other, "Thank you, but…" glancing over his shoulder towards the stairs that lead below deck, "We should probably wait."

"Eh…" while the teen was all for being polite, he was still a little confused, he glanced over at the stairs as well before looking at the attendant. Sensing the confusion and curiosity, Taupy was kind enough to shed some light on the others statement.

"You are a wolf farrel, kuma?" this was a rather obvious statement, but this was mostly for Kyrie, who in turn seemed to catch on.

"Oh! Just like real wolves?" the blonde replied, "Since Naja is a higher rank he has to go first right?"

Taupy could only bring his gloved hand up to cover his face, while he was slightly amused by the statement, he was certain the other wouldn't take it as such. However, the outraged response never came, there was only silence. Growing curious, the bear glanced up to find that Naja had arrived and seemed to have an unreadable expression on his face. This look had caused the other two to tense up and grow nervously silent. Staring, Taupy just smirked and shook his head.

"Shall I pretend I didn't hear all of that?" the silver haired farrel finally spoke. The other quickly jumped to his feet and started stammering what seemed to be some sort of apology, but Naja just waved his hand to the side, "It doesn't matter, it's just a casual formality we share." He then took a seat with the others before being nervously handed a plate. "I was wondering where this smell was coming from…"

Sitting beside Naja, the younger farrel looked like he wanted to crawl under a rock, "The human made us breakfast, it certainly smells better than those packs of preserved sandwhale and dried fruit." He didn't try to hide the hint of glee in his voice.

"Actually, that's what this is." Kyrie smiled slightly while handing Taupy a plate and then preparing one for himself. Taupy, who had accepted his plate, looked a little amused as the looks on the other two farrel's faces. He wasn't really surprised since he knew Kyrie had a knack for cooking.

"Really…?" Naja studied the dish briefly before concluding that it didn't appear to be poisoned. While he was certain that the boy was not going to run away, he was still a soldier and the other was still a prisoner so letting his guard down was not an option. The real problem though, was that this human was unpredictable, and unpredictable could be troublesome and if possible…dangerous? Perhaps not, but certainly still troublesome.

The four of them all sat and silently ate their breakfast, while it wasn't said out loud, they were all dwelling on the day to come. They would be reaching the World Salvation Committee's Spring Continent headquarters by midday, which would be where they parted ways for a time being. Kyrie didn't look nearly as concerned as the other three, yes he was far from being at ease, but he did not want to trouble the others. Taupy was the most concerned however, like the other two, he knew that the boy was not going to be treated well. At least he had willingly surrendered which would hopefully grant him some leeway, but they could not…would not…over look the fact that he had killed a number of their soldier's.

The younger farrel had finished his breakfast first, excusing himself while setting his plate down, he went to get the engine started and all the sails prepped. Taupy and Naja were the next to finish, Taupy had started to gather up the plates and dishes, but Kyrie quickly spoke up.

"I can get those, I made the mess after all." He had a pleasant smile once again, though he had hardly eaten anything. Setting his plate off to the side, he quickly reached out and pulled Taupy into a hug, "Besides, I couldn't let you do all the work…so cute…."

"Geh! Let go kid! I'm not a toy, kuma!"

Uncertain of what to make of this behavior, Naja just shook his head slowly before taking on the task of cleaning up, Kyrie looked distracted anyway. By the time the blonde teen had noticed the plates were gone, the boat had already taken off, and Naja and his attendant were at the stern of the boat. Still hanging onto the bear, the boy sighed, "Taupy, do you think I'm doing the right thing?"

Heaving his own sigh and more or less giving in and letting the other treat him like a doll, Taupy replied, "It's hard to say, kuma." He then glanced up at the other, "But, it's like you said, you want to get stronger so you don't have to use your power, kuma."

"Yeah." Kyrie glanced off to the side, if he just explained that he didn't want to hurt others or destroy the world, perhaps they could get past this without any violence.

"Is there something else on your mind, kuma?"

Kyrie was silent for a moment, thinking over how he was going to respond. There were a lot of things on his mind, "You said that Naja had killed a lot of World Destruction Committee members in the past, but he's not trying to kill me, why is that?" his gaze lowered, "There were so many times before that he could have…."

"Heh," Taupy had a feeling this question would come up, the boy wasn't always the quickest, but he wasn't stupid, that was for sure, "There are two types of battles, the battle of the heart and the battle of the soul, kuma."

"I'm not sure I understand." The boy just heaved a defeated sigh.

"Why do you choose to fight against your power, kuma? Why is Morte fighting against the world, kuma? Why is Naja fighting for the world, kuma?" Taupy tried explaining, "It's a decision one makes to become stronger, either for themselves or for the sake of someone else, that's the battle of the soul, kuma." He could now tell that the boy was thinking about this a little more, "As for the battle of the heart, that's something you have to discover on your own, kuma." He added with a knowing smile.

Kyrie sat there for a long time, thinking over Taupy's words. What was he doing this for? Well that was obvious, what he did was unforgivable, even he had trouble forgiving himself for what he did at Barni Village. But that was just it, he didn't have control over whatever it was that caused it, that power…the power to destroy the world as Morte had so elegantly put it. He was doing this so that something like that won't happen again, to save those around him, those close to him. An ironic sort of smile pulled lightly at the corners of his lips.

He wanted to save the world from himself….


	3. Chapter 3

**Remade Cats and Dogs Chapter 3 **

by ~TailWagNaja, Nov 17, 2011, 10:29:07 AM

Literature / Prose / Fiction / General Fiction / Introductions & Chapters

Now that they were officially on their way, both Kyrie and Taupy were placed in handcuffs and stowed away below deck like official prisoners were supposed to be. The small vessel; in the meantime, was practically flying across the sand towards the spring continent. Standing at the front of the small boat, Naja was staring at the horizon as they drew ever closer to their destination. By this point, the sun was already above the horizon line and the sky was already turning its usual blue hue. It would seem they would have good weather the rest of the way.

"Sir? Is something wrong?"

"Hm?" turning his crimson gaze back towards his attendant, the silver haired half-farrel quirked an eyebrow before considering the question, "No, it's nothing…" he then replied with a small sigh. Now was not the tome for reconsideration, he had done his duty as a World Salvation Committee member and now he had to focus on what exactly he was going to put in his report. With the light shed on the new evidence, it was now only a matter of opinion whether or not the boy was really a danger.

In every aspect, he is, but the fact that he cannot control this strange power and the fact that he personally had no vendetta of any sort against the world to want to do anything to destroy it…yes, it would be down to a matter of opinion. One thing was for certain; allowing him near the World Destruction Committee was absolutely out of the question. Proving only to bring up rather unsettling memories of that human female. While her strength was impressive and some would say noble, her intentions were rather misguided.

Frowning at his own thoughts, Naja shook his head, perhaps judging before getting to know someone was one of his vices. Product of being on the receiving end perhaps? But whatever her reasons, she is probably the biggest threat at the moment; it actually wouldn't surprise him if more towns fell in the next couple of days. This only seemed to worsen the half-wolf's mood; he needed to focus on his report. The sooner he could get through all of this, the sooner he could get back out in the field to stop that woman.

A second shake of the head and a slightly concerned glance from his attendant, Naja had decided that he could use a fresh perspective. Besides, he was getting too worked up and working on a report now would only result in forgotten details and mistakes.

"We still have a couple of hours before we reach headquarters correct?"

"That's right, perhaps…sir…you should take a nap. You seem rather tired and stressed."

"Tired yes, stressed…not nearly as much as you might think, Lou." Naja glanced off to the side, "From the most recent events, what can you tell me about that boy?"

The younger glanced at his superior questioningly for just a short moment, he wasn't sure he understood where this was going, but he turned his gaze back out in front of the boat, "I thought that a conclusion had already been reached."

"More or less, but I want to get your opinion." Naja smiled.

This would take a bit more thought it would seem, he didn't want to go against his superior, but he could tell that Naja was looking for an honest answer. But he had only spent a short time actually with the human so he couldn't really say he could give a decent enough answer. "Compared to most human's I've encountered, he is certainly unusual…"

Tilting his head, Naja's smile remained, "How so?"

"I'm not really sure how to describe it, he doesn't seem like a bad person but we were ordered to take him in and lock him up."

Listening intently to his attendants' further explanation, Naja had been thinking along similar lines. Despite all of that, he wasn't going to go against direct orders. His job wasn't entirely complete yet, he still needed to learn all he could. He still needed to see though everything about that boy and if possible, rid him of his destructive powers.

Several hours had passed and the sight of the large island that was known as the spring continent and the location of the World Salvation Committee's headquarters. With their destination met, their boat soon pulled into the harbor and docked. Naja lead Kyrie and Taupy straight off the small vessel and straight towards the large main gates. Lou was not far behind; he had to tie the boat down before anything else. Though, once he had arrived, Aquila Rex was already there and was standing in wait. He did not look in a particularly favorable mood.

"I'm impressed by your speed in apprehending this dangerous terrorist," he replied while eyeing the blonde male as if he carried some sort of disease, "However, it was not fast enough," holding up a hand, one of the nearby officers handed the bird farrel a sheet of paper, "According to this report, our sister city and the beastlord who controls it have been wiped out." Shoving the paper out so that it was right up in Naja's face, "The number of casualties is mounting in the thousands!"

While the half-wolf didn't flinch, Kyrie had done all of the flinching for him, he knew that the destruction of that town had been devastating. However, before he could do anything about it, Naja had stepped up and responded with a rather forced smirk.

"I apologize, but we have the boy in our custody now which puts a wrench in the World Destruction Committee's plans."

The avian just scoffed before motioning to the soldiers around him, "Take those criminals to their cells," he then turned his attention back onto Naja, "As for you, I expected better, but I know a good investment when I see one…I'll be expecting your report within the day." With that, he turned as the soldiers relieved Naja of his prisoners, leaving him standing with a dejected look. His attendant stood beside him and glanced up with a concerned expression.

"Sir?"

"Lou, I need for you to find out which level they are being kept on and who will be conducting the interrogation." Naja turned for a moment before adjusting his glasses. Once he was certain, he just gave a nod to himself before turning once more and started into the first hall. There were officers' quarters on the bottom floor, he needed to finish his report after all and he was certain that the interrogation wouldn't start for several hours so he had time to rest.

Lou in the mean time was left standing in the same spot with an uncertain look now, usually he was pretty good at reading Naja's feelings, but this case was a little different. What on earth was he thinking? What was he planning? Surely he wouldn't do something…reckless…would he? Frowning but then sighing, the younger farrel just started walking, he would do as he was instructed but he had a very bad feeling about the whole thing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Remade Cats and Dogs Chapter 4 **

by ~TailWagNaja, Nov 30, 2011, 12:48:12 PM

Literature / Prose / Fiction / General Fiction / Introductions & Chapters

The day went on, Naja had retired to his quarters and was presently trying to work out his report. There was a lot on his mind and even more to do, but time was hardly in his favor. This wasn't entirely uncommon a situation, just not one that was welcomed with open arms, but no matter, he shifted in his chair and crossed one leg over the other. His tail gave a slight swish as he twirled the pen he held between his fingers. Having already written out a good portion of the report, mainly detailing about how the captives were cooperative and willingly surrendered. He had also put in great detail the connection between the boy and the World Annihilation Front and how he was unwillingly dragged into the whole situation. There was one part of Naja that told him that his superiors would most likely disregard these facts. They were known for taking all criminal's words as lies and as such, anything that boy said could be taken as some sort of trick or attempt to worm his way out of being captured and locked away.

Closing his eyes and shaking his head, Naja just had to come up with some sort of conclusion that didn't sound in anyway treasonous. Kyrie was not an immediate threat, yes he had dangerous powers but he was unwilling to use them. The World Annihilation Front on the other hand, had at least some power in their own right and was more than willing to use that power to destroy innocent lives. Blinking, that sounded like a decent conclusion, try to redirect their focus back onto a more pressing threat.

In that moment, there was a knock at the door. Sighing and getting to his feet, the half feral walked over and opened the door a crack. He was greeted by his attendant so he stepped to the side and opened the door further, "Well?" he asked curiously.

"Taupy is being held on the third level in block 19, the human is being held on the second in block 34." The younger then spoke up, he still looked concerned but having had some time to really think it over, he was confident enough to believe that Naja had a plan and as such he should have been more supportive. So, feeling more eager to help, he then added, "I also over heard that they intend on interrogating them this evening."

"I see…" Naja turned and returned to his desk, all the while holding his chin in deep thought. The third floor was for prisoners who either didn't pose any sort of threat or for those who would serve shorter sentences. As for the second, it had slightly higher security for those who did pose threats. It seemed that his superiors were smart enough to know how troublesome it would be to have those two together. Taupy had a knack for keeping the boy calm and he seemed to have a rather protective instinct towards him. Without his so called protector, there was nothing keeping the interrogator from going all out.  
"Is there anything else I can do?" Lou then asked.

"Yes, I just finished my report, I would like for you to bring this to Aquila Rex." He picked up his report and neatly placed it inside an envelope before handing it to the other, "I still need you to find out who will be conducting the interrogation and if there is anyway we could possibly sit in on it."

Accepting the envelope and quickly standing at attention, "I will do that right away sir!" Lou replied before turning on his heels and dashing out the door.

Chuckling to himself, Naja got to his feet and closed the door. Now that the important stuff was done, he could focus on a little pampering alone time. Besides, the idea of having not changed or bathed in several days on account of being on assignment, and said assignment left little time for proper personal hygiene, Naja did not want to do anything further until after he took a shower. Sniffing, he turned and walked towards the back of his quarters, removing his bladed wheel shaped weapon and setting it down on his desk. Near the back of the living area was a rather small bathroom, the essentials were provided which included a very small walking shower.

Pulling the coverings off his arms, he then reached in and turned the knob for the hot water. It took only half a second before a sudden rush of cold water burst from the shower head. He would have to wait a few moments for the water to actually warm up. In this sort of place, the warmth of a shower usually depended on how many other people were using the showers. Of course, from past experiences he had learned that fast showers were usually smarter since someone could suddenly decide to flush the toilet which would turn even the hottest shower into a fidget and violent wake up call. However, Naja felt that luck was on his side.

Once the water reached an acceptable temperature, he removed his glasses and set them by the sink before carefully undressing. That one simple action had inspired a sigh of relief, while he wouldn't publically announce it, he had been feeling rather itchy and irritated. Taking a short moment, he glanced at himself in the small mirror that hung over the sink, just one glance was enough to show him just how tired he looked. He also took note of the small collection of faded scars, one couldn't go through life as a soldier much less a half-blood without receiving a few scrapes along the way. Allowing the mirror only a second longer before turning, Naja stepped into the shower and directly under the hot stream before closing the curtain.

A second relieved sigh slipped from his lips, this was just what he needed. A nice shower and perhaps a short nap, yes, that sounded like an acceptable plan. If things worked out as he anticipated they would, in just a few hours he would be sitting in on Kyrie's interrogation. Closing his eyes and allowing the water to wash over his face, just thinking that boy's name got his mind buzzing. His plan was to learn more about his mysterious power and then find a way to rid him of it. The problem was, if this power had world ending capabilities, what on earth would be strong enough to destroy it? Then rose the question, what if it couldn't be destroyed? It also brought to mind that no human in this world possesses such powers, with that in mind, does that make the boy…well…not human?

Clenching his teeth in a subtle growl, he couldn't discourage himself, besides, the boy said himself that he didn't want to destroy the world. There shouldn't be anything to worry about there, leaning forward and resting his hands on the smooth shower walls just enough so that the water cascaded down his back now, Naja slowly opened his eyes a fraction. He may not want to destroy the world, but there are those out there who do and those who would want to try and use his power to their advantage. With such greed and destruction, it almost wouldn't matter what the boy wanted…he wasn't a fighter, there was only so much he could do…only so long he could resist before….

Scoffing, Naja forced these thoughts to be back of his mind before grabbing a bar of soap and working up a lather. Such thoughts were best saved for the interrogation, for now he stared to wash off the last several days of dust, dirt, grime, and other assortment of unpleasantness; and he enjoyed every last second of it. However, despite taking some liberty in taking his time, the shower only lasted about ten minutes before the water starting cooling off. Not wanting to catch a chill, Naja shut the water and reached for a towel. The first one he grabbed he used to do a quick dry before wrapping it around his waist and stepping out. Reaching for a second towel, he used this one to dry off his hair before resting it over his shoulders and reaching for his glasses.

Once he could see properly again, he walked back out into the main part of the room before looking around. Now that he thought about it, he didn't have a change of clothes with him, perhaps he would have Lou take his clothes to be cleaned? Just hearing himself think that made him shake his head and immediately label it unacceptable. But he wasn't about to parade himself out in public with only a towel. Well, call it being selfishly lazy, but he was going to worry about it later. Right now, he just needed to sleep, and sleep he would as he walked up to the small standard issue bed…which was really more of a cot than anything else, but it was better than the beds on that boat. Humming, he sat down on the edge before lying down and closing his eyes.

The level of his exhaustion must have been much higher than he had anticipated because the moment his eyes closed he was out like a light. It was only five minutes later that Lou had returned with the information he'd gathered. When he saw Naja sleeping rather soundly, the attendant sighed and smiled before walking over and carefully taking his superiors glasses off and resting them on the desk along with the papers he'd gathered. He was glad to see that Naja at least was able to have a peaceful rest, though it was possible he would get in trouble if he didn't wake the other. Choosing to simply allow the other to sleep, Lou turned and took his leave.

-

Meanwhile, Kyrie sat with his back against the cold, damp, and hard wall of his prison cell. His legs were pulled up against his chest with his arms wrapped tightly around them. As much as he should have figured things would go this way, the fact that he had been separated from Taupy had been an unexpected development. He had been filled in that he was to be questioned, but the tone in which the feral told him made a rather sickening lump form in his throat and in the pit of his stomach. He could still remember what Taupy said just before they went their separate ways.

Or, now that he was thinking about it, the blonde could not fully recall. It was something about trying not to be scared, he was certain about that much. Glancing up, the cell block was eerily quiet, there was the occasional sound of dripping water and rats scurrying about in search of a meal. Then, there was a loud thunk followed by footsteps. Somebody was coming! Shifting, Kyrie inched back and tried to put as much distance as possible between himself and the front of his cell. It was then that three guards appeared, one of them had a ring of keys and pulled out one that unlocked his cell door. The other two stormed inside and grabbed the boy by his upper arms and forced him to his feet.

"H-Hey…wait I…!" this couldn't be right, he thought that he wasn't going to be interrogated for a while, had that many hours actually gone by already? It was hard to tell how much time had passed in this place so for all he knew, it must have.

Neither guard seemed to pay him any mind as they kept a firm, yet almost painful, grip on his arms while forcing him to stumble out of the cell and down the hall. Kyrie was able to get a better look at his surroundings and could now easily say that this place was a giant maze. Even if he could or wanted to try and escape, he was sure he'd get lost long before he found the exit. There was also the fact that he couldn't nor wouldn't leave Taupy here, and he had no idea where his cuddly companion had been taken.

After what seemed like a dreadfully long trek, they arrived at a set of large and finely decorated doors. They seemed rather out of place in such a dark and dank place, but he was not allowed to ask questions as he was pushed towards them as they were opened. Inside was another hall with a handful of doors leading off in both direction and another large double door at the very end. Blinking, Kyrie opened his mouth but closed it quickly when he was forced inside the second room to the right. Inside looked like something out of one of those horror stories with the mad scientists and stuff. There was a table with restraints, chains hanging from the wall and ceiling, a counter with drawers that no doubtfully hid away all sorts of unpleasant tools of the trade, and near the center was a small metal table and two chairs.

The guards thankfully brought him to the table and chairs, he was then pushed down into the one that faced away from the door he had just entered. The two then turned and left, the sound of the door locking only served as a reminder that he wasn't going to get away that easily. Sniffing, Kyrie took his time glancing around and studying each terrifying looking device. The color in his face had all but drained away, his mind was buzzing, his fear was growing rapidly as he considered cooperating further and telling them as much as he knew. But just thinking about it made him remember all of the those people, some of the people on the World Annihilation Front were nice people and if he told the beast lords about them then they might end up in this place or worse…be killed.

Nibbling on his bottom lip, a sudden harsh and painful sounding cry came from somewhere nearby. It had startled Kyrie into jumping and nearly falling out of his chair, there was a sudden cracking sound followed by more of those painful cries. Then silence followed by heavy and angry sounding footsteps. They grew louder and louder until the sound of the locks coming undone on his door made the blonde freeze. The door then violently swung open and an angry, dark haired feral stormed inside. In a short lasting fit, he threw what looked like a whip into the corner of the room with the counter. That must have been what Kyrie was hearing seconds ago which only made the terrified look on his face grow. The feral then turned his attention onto the frozen boy and it was then that Kyrie blinked and drew in a sharp breath.

He knew that face and upon further inspection he noticed that his other arm, which he did a good job in keeping hidden in his coat, was in a sling. But there was no time for anything else, the other had stormed over and grabbed him by the throat, hoisting him up and off the chair so that his feet barely touched the ground.

"It's your turn now terrorist, I'm going to make you talk and when I'm done, I'm going to break you." He then moved his other arm so that Kyrie could get a better look, "Look what you did! You took my hand and killed all of my men!" his grip started to tighten causing the boy to gasp and struggle a bit. It was then that a familiar face appeared at the door, it was Lou.

"R-Rajiv..s-sir! What are you doing?!" he had come down to speak with Rajiv to confirm that he had gotten Naja's request to sit in on the interrogation, but from the looks of things, the other had already started. It was far too early but it wasn't unheard of for such appointments to be moved to an earlier time.

"Tch, what's it look like, I'm interrogating this terrorist! Now what do you want?!" was Rajiv's answer. He glared dangerously at the lower ranking feral while still keeping a dangerously tight grip on Kyrie's throat.

"I-I just wanted to c-confirm that you had gotten N-Naja's request to sit in on the interrogation." Lou stammered, his gaze would periodically switch between the angry Rajiv and the struggling to breathe Kyrie. Though his words seemed to have caught the boys' attention.

Scoffing again, Rajiv threw the blonde to the ground causing the boy to let out a rather pained and pathetic squeak of a gasp, before turning and walking towards Lou; who in turn took an instinctive step back. "Why don't you go back and tell that bastard he may have been an old friend but he is not to get in my way this time and…" he gripped the door with his good hand, "If he wanted to sit in on this so bad, he should have gotten the message from Lupus Rex…my father…that the time was moved ahead." With that he slammed the door in Lou's face.

Left standing with his face to a slammed door and a rather shocked expression, Lou for a moment couldn't get his feet to move. This was very bad, he had to tell Naja. He knew that Rajiv was going to be the one conducting the interrogation, but he hadn't known about the time change. Once he was able to get his feet to move, the young feral was partly regretting not waking Naja earlier….he would have seen it…he would have known….then, he would have been able to get there in time. Sniffing slightly but pushing his regrets to the back of his mind, Lou took off like a shot through the many winding halls to the other side of the prison where Naja's quarters were.

-

Back in Naja's room, he had just woken up and was slowly sitting up and stretching. A small groan escaped him followed by a slight shiver. He had fallen asleep still slightly wet from the shower and wearing only the two towels. Frowning at his negligence, he slowly got to his feet and re-secured the slightly slipping towel around his waist. Blinking, he quickly looked around, where had his glasses gone? He was certain he had fallen asleep with them on, which almost never happened since they were quite expensive and even at his pay grade would cost an arm and a leg to fix or replace. When he found them on the desk, Naja picked them up and put them on. He then picked up the papers that were under them and quickly read through them.

"Tch…damnit!" he turned and started hastily searching for something clean to wear. He had forgotten that he didn't have any clean clothes with him so he had to settle for putting his old clothes back on. He could feel how worn they were now that he was clean, but he tried to ignore it as he pulled his long red scarf on and secured his weapon. By the time he reached the door and opened it, Lou was standing just outside looking as if he had just ran a marathon, he had his hand reached out as if ready to knock. "Lou…"

"S-Sir, I'm sorry! R-Rajiv he's already started the…interrogation…"

Figuring as much, Naja quickly shut the door behind him and ordered Lou to lead the way. They had to hurry or things would turn ugly, in fact, he was certain they would turn ugly. Rajiv was a strong and loyal soldier there was no arguing that, and he was an old friend; however, he was brash and had an unsightly habit of rushing into things before thinking. It was his own fault for rushing in against Kyrie without knowing all the facts and then getting hurt. But of course ,Naja knew that Rajiv would not see it that way and like how he did with him, would take it all out on the boy.

It was then that Naja had suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. It must have been Rajiv who had caused the boy's powers to activate. Something he did! Knowing that fool, he would probably trigger it again if he didn't know what caused it in the first place. "Lou! Which door is he in?!" putting a little extra haste in his run, Naja knew he had to get there before the worst happened.

"S-Second on the right sir!"

"Good, now go locate Taupy and bring him there," Naja ordered while moving past the attendant, "I'm counting on you Lou." He gave a nod before moving down the hall a bit faster and not waiting for the others compliance.

-

Just outside the prison, a large sand ship was moving through the thick sandsea. Standing on deck was a young woman with long brown hair and a piercing, fiery gaze in her eyes. She was holding a large sword like weapon and was surrounded by several men with rifles and various other forms of weaponry.

"This is where they said he was being held…right?" she asked the man closes to her right.

"That's right…" he replied with a nod.

She gripped her weapon tightly as a dark smirk pulled on her lips, "Good, now…let's do this!" Once the ship was close enough to the port, she took a mad dash and flying leap over the side and landed on the dock that lead up to the prison. Not so much as waiting for the others, who were following suit and not that far behind, she charged forward. The guards who stood in her way were swiftly taken out.

"Let's show these stinking ferals what happens when they mess with the World Annihilation Front!"


	5. Chapter 5

It wasn't long until Naja reached the interrogation room Lue had directed him towards. There was a lot of angry shouting coming from behind the closed door which was a dead give away that Rajiv probably wasn't pulling any of his punches. Frowning, the half blood applied several heavy knocks; surely this would get his superiors attention and perhaps also give the victim a moments rest. Hopefully he wasn't too late. The shouts silenced but were followed by angry footsteps and the door suddenly swinging open to reveal Rajiv. As usual, he did not look happy.

"Look who finally decided to show up." Was the taller males irate reply, he made no move to stand aside or allow the other to enter.

"Yes, well, considering I only recently learned of the change in schedule…" Naja started before casting a wayward glance into the room, "I'd almost get the impression you didn't want me to show up." Inside he could indentify a familiar blonde form lying near motionless on the floor. The fact that they were still there and alive was proof enough that Rajiv hadn't forced the boy to activate his destructive powers. While that was a good thing, judging by Kyrie's condition it could only mean that he'd got there in time. He had to give the human credit, were he the one with the unpredictable and world destroying powers, staying this long in a room with Rajiv would have resulted far less positively in far shorter time.

"Are you just going to stand there staring like a fool? What do you want?" Rajiv was kind enough to break the spectacled male from his thoughts, he appeared impatient…not an uncommon sight. Naja pushed his glasses up before making eye contact once more.

"You know as well as I that my presence at this interrogation was approved," was the answer he gave, "I'm here to lend my assistance." The key was to make sure he didn't set Rajiv off any further.

"No, I've got things under control here," that wasn't good, "He's a resilient one, but he's going to break soon enough." Rajiv turned to go back to his task; however, Naja grabbed the door before it could close.

"Sir, I think that would be a mistake, perhaps trying a different meth…"

"You forget your place half-blood! I was put in charge of this human's interrogation and I will go about it in whatever method I so choose!"

Naja felt a muscle twitch, so much for keeping him settled. The damn fool and his stubborn pride were going to get everybody killed. As tempting as defying Rajiv was, Naja wasn't stupid. To disobey a superior officer was a very serious offence. However, leaving the issue as it was would only make matters worse if he some how sets Kyrie off. He had no plans on dying just yet, though if things escalated to that point, he sure as hell didn't want Rajiv to be the cause of his own demise. No, that simply would not do.

"Rajiv, I must…" Naja was not able to finish when a sudden explosion shook the entire hall, both he and Rajiv looked up and around. Dust had kicked up into the air as the lights flickered, there was an eerie silence before more explosions could be heard. Shortly after several World Salvation soldiers came frantically running down the hall.

"Sir! We're under attack!" the first to arrive reported.

"What!? By who!?" Rajiv, naturally, was the first to react.

"I-It's h-her sir, the Scarlet Plague!"

Naja raised an eye brow, was that woman here for Kyrie? He had been certain they weren't being followed but then again. He frowned slightly; they had left her in a rather unstable state. Or at least that had been his observation. Kyrie had been rather cold towards her when he chose to come with him. That would be a problem.

"Get yer head out of the clouds!" Rajiv, once more, pulled Naja from his thoughts; this time though, by grabbing the front of his shirt, "You stay here and keep an eye on him while I go and deal with that human woman, got it!"

Perhaps events were playing in his favor; Naja just gave a nod and a curt 'Yes sir', before being released. He watched as the soldiers lead Rajiv away towards where all the commotion was coming from. Removing his glasses and pinching his temple, a short groan escaped him. Returning the glasses to their correct place, Naja entered the room and closed the door behind him. It would only be a matter of time before Morte found her way to their spot. Crouching down next to the blonde male, he reached a pale hand out and checked for a pulse. It was their but it felt erratic, fear no doubt, "Kyrie…" choosing to use his name in hopes of getting an immediate response, Naja gave the boy's shoulder a gentle shake, "Can you move?"

When he did not get the immediate answer he'd been shooting for, Naja shifted and worked his hand underneath the other. Being as prudent as possible, he carefully rolled Kyrie onto his side. This rewarded him with a groan from the human, what he found he should have expected. Kyrie was pretty battered. He had gotten pretty beaten during their own battle, but did not use his powers…this case was the same. Another explosion made the room tremble, now was not the time for reflection. Naja felt he could save such things for a better time, now he had to try moving Kyrie to a more secure location. Pulling the younger male up, he swung an arm over his shoulder before hoisting both himself and Kyrie to their feet.

Attempting to move towards the door proved inefficient this way. Letting out a slight growl, Naja gingerly moved the others arms over both shoulders before crouching down and hoisting Kyrie onto his back. This way would be better it seemed, though he had to tug at his scarf until it stopped choking him. Once situated, the white haired male walked to the door and pulled it open. Four more soldiers ran by before disappearing around a corner. Silence, then shouts could be heard, then gun shots. That was more than enough of a cue for him as he quickly exited and ran in the opposite direction. Naja trusted Lue was smart enough to come find him once things had died down.

"Ha! These guys are pathetic," Morte cut down what had to be her twentieth feral as she and three others made their way deeper into the prison, "And this was supposed to be their most secure facility." She paused at a four way intersection, "Which why is he being held?"

"First on the left, if our intelligence is correct." The male on the right replied, he was carrying an insidious looking club and wore a bag over his left shoulder, which carried small explosives. Morte just smirked and gave a determined nod before continuing on. She had been on the war path since Kyrie left; he had honestly cut her deep. For as long as she could remember, he was the one she had been looking for, hoped for. He had the power that she desired, even after she and Toupy had saved him from those disgusting animals, after she showed him just how rotten the world was…he did not share her feelings. At least not in the way she had been hoping. Kyrie was a fool, or so she told herself.

But, he was not the most pressing subject on her mind. She would see him again after all. Rounding a corner and running into a small group of World Salvation soldiers, the other two men that were with her quickly stepped forward. They were armed with rifles and quickly opened covering fire as Morte charged forward to deliver the final blow while they were distracted. Just those four alone were able to cover a large amount of ground before reaching the hall with the interrogation rooms.

"Down here," the man with the club motioned, "It's this one." He pointed to the first door on the left, which Morte made short work of. Kicking the broken pieces of what used to be the door out of the way, she and one of the rifleman entered. Both immediately ran over to a figure lying on the floor, wrists and ankles bound.

"Agan! Wake up, we're bustin' you outta here!"

The red head groaned before opening his eyes and looking up. He looked pretty worse for ware, the worst being his back which showed signs of a nasty beating, "H-hey…what t-took you guys so long…" he attempted to joke.

"Oh, the usual~" Morte joked back, "Can you walk?"

"Y-yeah I think so…just gotta unbind me," Agan grinned though grimaced shortly after, his whole body ached, "Oh and, you won't believe who else is here…"

Morte cut the bonds holding her dear friend before looking up, "Who?"

"That jerk Kyrie," the other stated, earning wide eyed looks of mixed reactions, "Heh," he rubbed his ankles and wrists in a sore attempt to get feeling back, "Yeah, the room just across the hall."

Morte was the first to stand, she turned to the others and pointed, "You, take this oaf back to the ship and get'm patched up," she then pointed to the man with the club, "You're coming with me."

"Hey now Red, you're not thinkin' on going after him are you?" hobbling to his feet and leaning against the nearest support, Agan reached out and grabbed Morte's wrist, "Remember, he left us…besides, it's only a matter of time before we're overrun."

Pulling her arm free, Morte didn't even look towards the other. Not saying a word, though Agan knew that look, she took her leave followed closely by the club wielding male. Agan groaned, it was bad enough she had risked coming here to save him, not that he wasn't grateful, but this sort of thing demanded timing and going after that boy Kyrie was probably not a part of her original plan. Things could get messy.

Just down the hall, Morte found the room but saw that it was empty. She noticed footprints in the dust and dirt as well as a few dark splotches that could be blood. Kyrie had been here, but where did he go? Following the steps, they lead out of the room, outside though there was no way to track the footprints.

"Morte, Agan is right, we can come back for the boy."

"No, they might move him…we have to find him now," she was adamant about this, scanning the ground and the hall intensely before moving on, "This way." It was a guess yes, but she had already covered the halls in the other direction so this was the only way he could have gone.

In the mean time, Naja was already several cell blocks down. Kyrie had not regained consciousness yet and he was starting to feel a lot heavier than he should. Letting out what felt like his hundredth exasperated growl, Naja shifted the others weight before stopping to catch his breath. Having had some quiet time to think, he had decided on bringing the human back to his quarters. There was no way the World Annihilation Front would know where that was so it was probably the safest place. That and he had first aide supplies there. Unadmittedly so, he had started to feel a slight pang of guilt for Kyrie's condition. He had said that if anything were to happen, he'd be the one there doing it…though he would not have resorted to violence this time around. Logically, even if he had been there, Rajiv was the one assigned even though it was his case. Benefits of having the current Lupus Rex as a father no doubt, something the other seemed to enjoy rubbing in his face, Naja tugged at his scarf again.

He would have rested just a little while longer but the subtle scent of humans drew him back to his feet. It seems they've caught onto him which meant it was time to go. However, only taking a few steps before running footsteps reached his ears, Naja gripped his passenger tightly before turning to look over his shoulder in time to see familiar red coming around the corner. Quickly turning back, Naja actually halted in surprise to see more humans coming in the other direction, those he had not noticed and he cursed silently for his negligence. Turning back his eyes met with Morte's. She was standing a few feet away, sword at the ready. The others who were with her had stopped, which he could only assume meant that she wanted to confront him.

"Hand him over like a good doggie," she smirked, "I doubt you could put up much more of a fight than the other guy."

Other guy? Naja's eyes narrowed, did she mean Rajiv? He was hot tempered and quick to retaliate but he was a strong fighter regardless.

"I'm sorry to say Miss. Asherah, but that's not going to happen." If this was going to escalate to a fight, he wasn't going to be able to do much with Kyrie on his back. So, not taking his eyes off of the sword wielding woman and keeping his guard up incase the others tried anything, Naja carefully put Kyrie down. "By now reinforcements will be arriving, you'll be over run and captured, following me was not a wise choice."

"Oh, I beg to differ," Morte brought her weapon up, "Since you're not going to hand Kyrie back over to us, I'll just have to TAKE him back!" and that was the end of the discussion. Launching herself forward, she brought the sword down heavy. The clashing and scraping of metal filled the air, having anticipated this much, Naja had drawn his own weapon and blocked the attack with ease. He wasn't called the best for nothing after all.

"You bastard! You tricked him into going with you!"

That sounded an awful lot like denial talking, Naja chose not to respond. No matter what this woman thinks he did, letting her take Kyrie was out of the question. Pushing back, Naja went on the attack, making quick and precise strikes. He was not aiming to kill her though, something he would no doubt be denied were he to allow Morte the upper hand. The location was terrible, Naja had to double back to defend Kyrie whenever one of the men from behind would try to sneak up and steal him away. He was cornered and while stamina was in essence on his side, numbers were not and they were starting to take their rightful toll.

His luck was running short, backed to the point of standing right in front of the blonde, Naja found himself breathing a little heavy and horridly surrounded. He would be over run long before the reinforcements reached them. He was going to save this world, and as it looked, die trying. Who would have thought that a well placed lamp and a last ditch effort would make itself known. Looking up, Naja hurled the bladed wheel at the lamp with enough force to make it shatter. The flash it made caused the others to jump back in surprise which was just the brief distraction needed for the half-wolf to grab Kyrie and break his way through what was certain defeat.

Morte though, recovered quickly and made to chase after them; however, the man with the club had responded just a bit quicker. Out of panic, he had lit one of the explosives and threw it down the hall after the retreating enemy.

"You idiot! You'll kill him!" Morte screamed but the following explosion had thrown them off their feet. The whole hall shook violently and was quickly filled with dust and smoke. Groaning, Morte slowly got to her feet, using her sword to hold herself up, she tried to peer through the dust cloud in hopes of seeing just what condition her targets were in. It took some time, but as soon as it settled, what she saw made her face go pale. The explosion had made the ceiling collapse, blocking the hall in which Naja had carried Kyrie. There was no way around it or through it, at least not without the risk of causing more instability.

"Damnit…"


End file.
